How can you start a career without experience?

After college graduation, many job seekers get discouraged based on the reality they encounter in the labor market. People who want to change career paths often fall victim, too.

Most firms want to employ experienced personnel in entry-level jobs. One wonders if a graduate will ever gain the much touted pre-entry experience. You need the experience to get a job, and you need a job to gain experience.

There are quite several ways that you can kick start the career of your dreams despite the experience restriction employers impose.

Try your luck

There have been cases where employers resort to employing promising inexperienced graduates, especially when experienced people do not apply for entry level jobs. This chance still exist today. The key to convincing employers is how creatively you craft your CV. You don’t flaunt your inexperience. Instead, you make a strong case for skills sets you possess that are relevant to the job. When called for an interview, don’t panic. Stay calm and answer politely when you are challenged over experience. You may end up being one of the lucky ones to get hired.

Start volunteering

Working for free can give you lots of opportunities to gain the experience you desire. This is an easier alternative to the internship. Working for a couple of months in a firm or industry that aligns with the type of job you crave can also provide valuable contacts. The reputation you build with these contacts over time may help you qualify for recommendation to an employer.

Volunteering will give you real life experiences that would inspire you and also build your CV. With your experience, you will be more confident during job interviews.

Opt for internship

Securing an internship is a better alternative to volunteering as you get paid as an intern. You get most of the benefits of volunteering, plus your employer may decide to offer you a full-time job.

Apprenticing under the tutelage of notable persons in your field is also another means of getting an excellent experience. Affiliations with notable persons in the job can catapult you faster towards reaching your career goals. Sometimes, an apprentice may be employed by the tutor.

Connect with people already working in your preferred career

A job hunt or career path is not meant to be taken in isolation. Keep in touch with family members and friends who are working or have people working in your field of choice. Set up your Linkedin profile, so you are more visible to potential employers. Use your social media account to market yourself to potential employers. You can also upload your CV on Jobsora.com so potential employers can consider you for an interview. Jobsora is a job search engine where you can target local vacancies in your area of interest. You will find vacancies from almost every country in the world. Take advantage of their services, even without paying a dime.

Brand your CV creatively

As you gain tangible experiences, whether through volunteering or other means, let them reflect in your CV. You need to create your CV in such a way that downplays your relative inexperience but extols your strengths.

Employers are getting bored with traditional CV formats as they tell little about job seekers. Employers hardly find the information they need in CVs. Take advantage of new and creative online CV templates to woo employers with your competencies.

Attend seminars and workshops

Be sure to attend seminars and workshops that are related to your career path. You get to discover current trends to distinguish you from other job-seekers. You can also meet with potential employers and get to relate with them in a friendlier environment.

Take short professional courses

Employers value professional certificates. They value the EXTRA skills acquired as a result of taking professional courses. Take advantage of expanding your contacts while availing yourself for professional courses.

Have the will to start small and grow big

When you are just starting a career, it is better to be realistic. Start with what your level of experience can afford and work your way up from there.

With creative approaches to your job search, diligence, and hard work, you can position yourself on a higher plane of career opportunities and fulfillment.

Good start-up businesses to consider opening in Singapore

Many of us dream of escaping the boring office life and just build our own small business empire aka home-based business.

In any case, there are some technicalities that prevent us from getting started, such as lacking start-up fund, networking, and the plain and fear of risk.

Looking to earn money through freelancing, and eventually even turn it to full-time business? Here are some money-making small business ideas that generally require less investment and professional skills.

Many of these business ideas can even be systematised to create passive income streams. Thanks to technology, many tasks can now be automated, giving you the ability to take more of a hands-off approach and focus on the most important part of your business.

Virtual Assistant. Virtual assistants require a phone, a computer and stable Internet access. This is a fantastic job for those looking for flexibility. A virtual assistant’s work varies and can cover tasks like editing, data entry, researching, preparing a report, social media management, etc. They typically charge $15-20 per hour dependent on the job specifics.

Tutoring. If you’re good with certain subjects and have passion for teaching, then tutoring can be the right job for you to get an extra income. You can be a home tutor or an online tutor, which won’t require any physical classrooms.

What you need is simply skill in the subject you want to teach, and willingness to spend a few hours weekly to help someone else. You can use tutoring websites to sign up with and begin your tutoring job. Current rates for tuition jobs are around $15 to $50 per hour, which will depend on your qualifications and the education level of the tutee.

E-Commerce. Alibaba recently smashed its Single’s Day record as sales hit 168.3 billion yuan or $34.6 billion. This shows the huge potential of the e-commerce market. To set up a functional e-Commerce store, you just need to register a good domain name, setup a hosting and web design. Still, the efficiency of your marketing and advertising effort will affect the profit you earn. To be successful in your business, it’s not always necessary to sell a hundred products. What you need are the right items to sell.

Photographer. Photographers don’t always need to have an expensive studio or an office to begin getting clients since he can conduct his business anywhere. You can be of service to weddings, family events, marketing events. Indeed, people a lot of money for professional photography. One research showed that professional event photography charges $100 to $150 per hour.

Social Media Consultant. Social media as you know is one of the most popular and influential advertising channels for awareness. Consequently, many companies now look for people who are adept in social media to aid them in managing their social media presence.

Posting for Facebook and tweeting on Twitter is conventional, so you need more knowledge and skills in advertising tools plus other sites like LinkedIn and Instagram or even YouTube to become an expert in social media.

Find one that suits your preferences? After choosing a business type, the next order of importance is to register your domain nameto save it for yourself, after which you need to find a web host and create your own website. Once you have completed all of these, work consistently on your business. Be prepared to invest time, patience, resilience to get the success you want.

Photo by Sven Scheuermeier on Unsplash

Things to consider when looking for a professional moving company

Moving from one place to another is extremely stressful and expensive. However, sometimes you cannot avoid moving.

People move for different reasons, such as a new better job, to live closer to family or the need to start a new life in a different place. If you hire a professional moving company, it will lessen the stress and the hassle of moving. This is why it is important to hire a professional and reputable removal company to help you move smoothly. Below are tips to help you find a good moving company and the things you ought to consider when hiring one:

Is the Company Licensed?

Do not hire a company that is not licensed, insured or accredited. Before you hire a company to help you move, check and confirm that they have all the necessary licenses and documents that allow them to operate. Make sure the company is fully insured. Consider hiring Apex Removals London, they are insured, reputable, licensed and qualified.

 Shop for Different Companies

Don’t settle for the first company you visit. Get an estimate from different companies as you review the terms, costs, and conditions for each different company. This way, you will find a good company with favorable terms and costs.

Do Some Research

Do not hire the company until you understand how they operate. Ask around from people who have moved using their services. Enquire the level of customer satisfaction with their services. Check the online reviews from the company’s website. If most of the clients expressed satisfaction with the services, you can go ahead and hire them. Avoid the company with many negative reviews.

Everything in Writing

Let every company you have contacted give you their estimate in writing. If you have hired the company, ensure that everything is in writing. Some companies have hidden charges, which if you do not settle, they will confiscate or withhold your belongings. Ask the company if they have any extra or hidden charges. Have the potential movers visit your home so that they can give you an actual moving fee, not just an estimate. Let the charges you have agreed on be the final charges. Make sure that you completely understand the contract. If there is anything on the contract you do not understand seek clarification.

The Period of Existence

Before hiring a company, consider the number ofyears they have served. A company that has served for long has more experience and in most cases,it is reputable, compared to a company that has started operating recently. A company that has served for long offers high-qualityservices, since they understand all the aspects of moving and storage. You can easily trust an experienced company to handle your belongings.

Cheap is Sometimes Expensive

The cost of moving should not be the only factor you consider. Always stick to your budget. Get suspicious of a company that is charging too low. Probably they have low-qualityservices or have hidden fees. Strike a balance on the cost of moving. Not too high or too low.

To find a good moving company, consider all the factors discussed here. Do good research both on the internet and from people who have moved before. Take your time to find a good Removing company. If you do it in a hurry, it might cost a lot of money or lose your belongings.

Getting To Know You: Amina Oyagbola, Business and Management Consultant, AKMS Consulting & Founder of WISCAR

Business Matters spent time with Business and Management Consultant Amina Oyagbola and found out who, and what her inspirations are.

What do you currently do at AKMS Consulting Ltd?

AKMS Consulting Ltd is a business and management consulting firm. We provide professional and business solutions to address the concerns of our clients and to improve the performance of their businesses.

Our solutions are knowledge and experience based, and tailored to meet the needs and objectives of our clients. After graduating from Ahmadu Bello University in your home country of Nigeria, you earned master’s degrees from both the University of Cambridge and Lancaster University.

Why did you choose to pursue higher education in the United Kingdom? Trinity College Cambridge, a leading college in one of the finest universities in the world, presented to me an opportunity to refine and hone my legal knowledge, to specialise in selected fields of the law, and to distinguish myself in the field.An MBA at Lancaster was motivated by my strong desire to broaden my career horizons and acquire general management and business skills.

That way, I was able to avoid professional limitations and to advance a career in industry and corporate management. I went to Lancaster as a Chevening scholar and consequently, I was able to draw on the informed advice of the British Council in choosing it. The modules it presented to me as well as the excellent networking opportunities were excellent platforms for me to launch a career in business, management, Human Resources and consulting.

The location of these enviable institutions was, for me, a boon as it was like going back home – my early education, up to my time at Ahmadu Bello University, was in the UK.

What was the inspiration behind your foundation, WISCAR?

The need to build and develop the next generation of female professionals and business leaders.

By this, I seek to pass on the baton handed to my generation by the select few exemplars that went before. WISCAR has, in my opinion, picked the ideal mechanism for achieving the generational passion on of leadership, skills and development initiatives. I refer of course to mentorship as a tool for enabling and enhancing women.

At a critical stage in my professional life, I was identified and selected to be part of the Aspen Global leadership network. The name Aspen speaks for itself. But it is important to note that ALIWA (Africa Leadership Initiative-West Africa), broadened my analytical and public service horizons.

It revealed to me the great potential of public-facing private initiatives for enhancing the well being of society.  That special perception helped me to conceive WISCAR.

Who do you admire?

I admire two amazing women who have shown staying power in very complex and challenging pursuits. I say pursuits because these are women in leadership who were forced to contend with issues from diverse fields of human endeavour.

Angela Merkel, over the course of more than 14 years, has shown grace, grit, savvy, humility, and wisdom in the way she has handled the German state. Like every political leader, she has had mud thrown at her, but she has shown an unusual deftness in warding off the dirt whilst at the same time keeping the thrust of her political friends and followers.

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf went through truly trying times in her political journey. She has navigated her troubles astutely and managed to transform her country from one with a seemingly hopeless future into one with hopes of total redemption. It must be noted as well, that she is the first female Head of State in Africa, which is certainly a landmark achievement.

Looking back on your career, is there anything you would have done differently?

I would not change anything in my career track. I, however, exhort women to deliberately focus on building relationships and a strong network to advance their careers and achieve success. I would also encourage women to speak up in pursuit of their goals and to be bold in seizing opportunities presented.

What defines your way of doing business?

Hard work, integrity, ethics, industry, drive, value delivery, knowledge, and expertise form the cornerstones of my professional engagements and consultancy practice. I keep my promises and put in the desired hard work to deliver value to my clients. I ensure that I only accept briefs and assignments that I am qualified and competent to deliver on. I thrive on challenges and strive for the delivery of creative and practical solutions. I am result driven and focus on positive outcomes and client satisfaction.

What advice would you give to someone starting out in your career?

Be honest, hardworking and humble, and focus on creating value. Ensure you have the educational base, knowledge and expertise to work in your chosen field. Ensure that you continue to learn (be a learning individual and run a learning-organisation).

Ensure you are principled and ethical, and that you give of yourself in the interest of the public. Take courses and read books that add value to you and attend webinars, conferences and seminars.

Finally, deliberately and intentionally build your network of friends, colleagues and associates. Ensure that you continuously initiate, plug into, and grow networks and that you involve yourself in the development and education of others in your professional life. In sum, create and nurture professional value chains.

You were recently honoured with a Lifetime Achievement award at the HR People Magazine Awards. What does an award like this mean to you?

Being a recognition of my professional value and worth within the industry, I was thrilled and felt enhanced by the award. Thrilled because of the accolade it represented; accolades paid by my predecessors and peers. Enhanced, because it represented due recognition of all the pain, hard work, and sometimes even soul-searching that went into my work.

I have always felt the need for total immersion in my professional engagements and pursuits. There were times, however, that I would question the sheer effort and dedication that I invested in my work.

This award has validated my values and the ‘all-in’ approach to my work.I hope and trust that it will inspire other HR practitioners to achieve, add value to organisations, and excel in strategic human resource management.

For me, the award is a call to re-dedicate myself towards the provision of leadership and support in the HR profession and use my rich and varied knowledge and expertise to address the business and management needs, and concerns of my clients through my consultancy practice.

How do you continue to grow professionally?

I attend conferences, workshops and seminars. I read relevant books and learn continuously from research in the course of executing briefs and assignments, and from several chat groups and professional bodies, I belong to. I strongly believe in continuous learning, improvement and development.